Wilhelm is less sunny about the sudden shift in circumstances. He liked his life in Thorne just fine, but his soreness over his displacement has more to do with a certain boy he'd finally kissed that last night in the Nether. The forces of the universe always seem to conspire against his happiness specifically...
At least he hasn't been dumped in a strange country alone. Again. So he's reminded when, while out exploring the city on Viktor's bicycle, he spots Mat amid the bustle. Or rather, he hears him first. He has come out to Thorne's taverns to support his friend often enough that he recognizes many of the tunes in his repertoire. The familiar notes tumbling over the street draw him in, and he swings off the bike to listen.
When the song concludes, Wilhelm claps enthusiastically and throws in a cheer too.
"Nice!" he calls out. He's here to be your hype man, dude.
Mat takes an elaborate bow, and slings his lute over his shoulder.
"Hey-o, Wilhelm!" He grins as he bends to check his case, plucking up the smattering of coins that had been tossed into it. Not awful. Not awful at all. Enough that he feels that he's contributing to the household. That's a new thing, having to pay for...everything.
"How goes it?"
He knows not everyone's adjusting to the sudden change as well as he is.
Wilhelm shrugs in answer, fussing with his hair out of habit more than any actual need.
"Alright, I guess." He pats the frame of the bike. "I get to ride on real tires now. And Kyle and I are figuring out how to cook."
Well, they make a lot of eggs, pancakes, and sandwiches. He tried to make rice the other night and half of it ended up stuck to the sides of the pot, while the other half melded into one monstrous clump. Even if he had no other reason to miss Thorne, the castle's dining hall would make a compelling argument. Such an array of dishes, all expertly prepared, feels like a dream now. But it's kind of fun too, muddling through the kitchen, laughing at their missteps. It passes the time.
"Every fellow ought know how to cook," Mat says sagely. At least the basics. But he does understand, it's not what they're used to. Thorne kept her Summoned pampered and cared for. Now they must fend for themselves.
"Still, it's exciting! The city's great. I've been exploring. Lots of places to explore! And the nightlife..."
Much more exciting than Thorne, in his opinion. More variety. With the promise of even more in the other cities here in the desert.
"Lots of museums, too, for the more academic minded among us."
He nods along, though he's mostly been spending his nights stretched out in the cot he's been provided, slipping into the Horizon to see a certain boy. It's hard to enjoy drunken carousing when you're heartsick.
"Yeah, I'll have to make a suitable husband for someone someday," he jokes in answer to the cooking comment. A glance up and down the street reveals that Mat's audience has dispersed to go about the ordinary business of their day.
"Well, if you're done here, we could look around for a better street to play."
"Nah, just marry a fellow who's better at cooking!" Mat laughs, clapping Wilhelm affectionately on the shoulder. He gathers up his things, agreeing with the other fellow's summation.
This street is played out.
"May take a bit, lots of corners have someone there already. I'm pretty sure the only reason no one's chased me off from anywhere yet is I'm Jaskier's student. He's a damned big deal here. All sorts of things are named after him!"
Leaning on the bike's handlebars as he watches Mat pack his lute away, he laughs.
"So would that be Jesper or Kaz for you?"
When Mat is ready to go, Wilhelm hops back on his bike. He won't pedal off and leave his friend in the dust, though. He weaves the front tire back and forth to balance himself at a lackadaisical pace.
"It sounds like you could be a celebrity around here too. Just wait, you'll get your own fans."
"Not sure yet! But between the three of us, I'm sure we'll be alright."
Mat laughs and shakes his head. Really, how has his life ended up like this? Two years ago and he was swearing he was too young to even think about marriage, and here he is with two husbands in all but official name.
If he were an Aes Sedai, he'd have to be a Green.
He watches Wilhelm on his contraption, still unsure if those things are genius or deadly mistakes. But the other fellow does seem the master of the machine.
"And not sure about celebrity, but folks here do seem a bit more enthusiastic about music overall. Not that folks back in Thorne didn't like it, and Light knows the tavern crowds could get rowdy, but...just a different feel, here. It's hard to explain."
Funny, the twists and turns your life takes. Wilhelm has thought for a while now that he was meant to end up in this world, that only here could he have the chance to shape his life into something he can be happy with. Catching the disbelief that flutters across Mat's expression, he wonders if his friend feels much the same.
With Kyle's announcement fresh in his mind, he also can't help but wonder—
"So, when the portals get fixed, will you go back to Thorne, or...?"
It's the first time that Mat's been directly asked that question. Neither Jesper nor Kaz needed to ask. It was a forgone conclusion.
He's quiet a moment, before nodding with a glance to Wilhelm.
"The 'or' option," he confirms. "I've mastered my magics well enough that I'm not worried about any accidents anymore. I don't need the safety net of Thorne's mages any longer."
And it had been the main thing keeping him in the castle. That and his friends, of course. He's grown close to plenty of folks there. But all other Summoned, it isn't as though living in different regions mean they never see one another. He and Jesper lived apart for years and did just fine.
He's not surprised by Mat's answer. There's nothing keeping him in Thorne anymore, and so much pulling him to Cadens. To the next stage of his life. A flicker of sadness gutters inside him then, for the prospect of saying good bye to another friend, but his happiness for Mat overpowers it.
Well, he wasn't surprised by the first part of Mat's answer, anyway. The second part sends his eyebrows popping up and his mouth gaping.
"Married?" Wilhelm echoes, as if nobody in the history of the world has ever considered such a thing. "Are you...allowed? I mean, the three of you?"
For someone who spent a whole year and some change hooking up with Jesper on and off, he's still stuck on certain ideas of tradition... Shaking his head down at his handlebars, scrubbing a hand through his hair, he remembers what he should have said first.
"Why not? We were in that future-that-might-be. Who's to tell us we can't?"
It seems simple enough to him. It's not as though they need to have it done up legally - he's not even sure if they could. They aren't citizens of this world. They can do as they please, and as far as he's concerned, a marriage doesn't need a paper. Plenty of folks back home didn't have papers, they just had the ceremony and that was that.
"And really, you know me. Do you think I could have just one husband?"
There's humor in his voice and a sparkle in his eye as he says it, grinning as Wilhelm offers his congratulations.
"No, I guess not. And Jesper would never let himself be limited to just one either." He reaches across to give Mat's arm a friendly pat. "You two really are meant for each other."
Marriage. He's still trying to wrap his head around it. They're all so young — a little older than Wilhelm, sure, but not by much. Marriage feels like something a long way down the road, beyond where sight can reach. He's had a hard enough time just finding someone and keeping them. But, he supposes, when you know you want to spend the rest of your life with someone, it's never too soon to begin.
"So when is the wedding? You're having a big party, right?"
And thank the Light for that. No jealous bouts, no possessiveness...Mat doesn't know how anyone puts up with all of that.
"And we're not that far along yet, haven't got a date or anything. Just...when we know it's safe, I suppose. But we will have the biggest party you've ever seen!"
That's a promise. As though Jesper would do anything else. He'd make the damn thing the event of the year, if not the decade.
"Of course you'll be a part of the whole thing, you're a good friend to two of us at least."
When we know it's safe. Loving someone in this world means taking a risk. Everything can shift in an instance. Just as easily as you came together and clicked into place, you can be pulled apart. Wilhelm shoves away the worries that always loom like shadows in the back of his mind, as if he might accidentally manifest the very things he worries about.
It's much nicer to think about the wild party Jesper will no doubt put on to celebrate his union with Mat and Kaz. When they dreamed they were gods, he'd accompanied Jesper to mortal weddings to bless the happy couples. Even without the aid of divine power, his friend's spirit is contagious.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
busking
At least he hasn't been dumped in a strange country alone. Again. So he's reminded when, while out exploring the city on Viktor's bicycle, he spots Mat amid the bustle. Or rather, he hears him first. He has come out to Thorne's taverns to support his friend often enough that he recognizes many of the tunes in his repertoire. The familiar notes tumbling over the street draw him in, and he swings off the bike to listen.
When the song concludes, Wilhelm claps enthusiastically and throws in a cheer too.
"Nice!" he calls out. He's here to be your hype man, dude.
no subject
"Hey-o, Wilhelm!" He grins as he bends to check his case, plucking up the smattering of coins that had been tossed into it. Not awful. Not awful at all. Enough that he feels that he's contributing to the household. That's a new thing, having to pay for...everything.
"How goes it?"
He knows not everyone's adjusting to the sudden change as well as he is.
no subject
"Alright, I guess." He pats the frame of the bike. "I get to ride on real tires now. And Kyle and I are figuring out how to cook."
Well, they make a lot of eggs, pancakes, and sandwiches. He tried to make rice the other night and half of it ended up stuck to the sides of the pot, while the other half melded into one monstrous clump. Even if he had no other reason to miss Thorne, the castle's dining hall would make a compelling argument. Such an array of dishes, all expertly prepared, feels like a dream now. But it's kind of fun too, muddling through the kitchen, laughing at their missteps. It passes the time.
no subject
"Still, it's exciting! The city's great. I've been exploring. Lots of places to explore! And the nightlife..."
Much more exciting than Thorne, in his opinion. More variety. With the promise of even more in the other cities here in the desert.
"Lots of museums, too, for the more academic minded among us."
no subject
"Yeah, I'll have to make a suitable husband for someone someday," he jokes in answer to the cooking comment. A glance up and down the street reveals that Mat's audience has dispersed to go about the ordinary business of their day.
"Well, if you're done here, we could look around for a better street to play."
no subject
This street is played out.
"May take a bit, lots of corners have someone there already. I'm pretty sure the only reason no one's chased me off from anywhere yet is I'm Jaskier's student. He's a damned big deal here. All sorts of things are named after him!"
That's fame, having things named after you.
no subject
"So would that be Jesper or Kaz for you?"
When Mat is ready to go, Wilhelm hops back on his bike. He won't pedal off and leave his friend in the dust, though. He weaves the front tire back and forth to balance himself at a lackadaisical pace.
"It sounds like you could be a celebrity around here too. Just wait, you'll get your own fans."
no subject
Mat laughs and shakes his head. Really, how has his life ended up like this? Two years ago and he was swearing he was too young to even think about marriage, and here he is with two husbands in all but official name.
If he were an Aes Sedai, he'd have to be a Green.
He watches Wilhelm on his contraption, still unsure if those things are genius or deadly mistakes. But the other fellow does seem the master of the machine.
"And not sure about celebrity, but folks here do seem a bit more enthusiastic about music overall. Not that folks back in Thorne didn't like it, and Light knows the tavern crowds could get rowdy, but...just a different feel, here. It's hard to explain."
no subject
With Kyle's announcement fresh in his mind, he also can't help but wonder—
"So, when the portals get fixed, will you go back to Thorne, or...?"
Will he choose to stay here?
no subject
He's quiet a moment, before nodding with a glance to Wilhelm.
"The 'or' option," he confirms. "I've mastered my magics well enough that I'm not worried about any accidents anymore. I don't need the safety net of Thorne's mages any longer."
And it had been the main thing keeping him in the castle. That and his friends, of course. He's grown close to plenty of folks there. But all other Summoned, it isn't as though living in different regions mean they never see one another. He and Jesper lived apart for years and did just fine.
"And we want to get married. Properly and all."
no subject
Well, he wasn't surprised by the first part of Mat's answer, anyway. The second part sends his eyebrows popping up and his mouth gaping.
"Married?" Wilhelm echoes, as if nobody in the history of the world has ever considered such a thing. "Are you...allowed? I mean, the three of you?"
For someone who spent a whole year and some change hooking up with Jesper on and off, he's still stuck on certain ideas of tradition... Shaking his head down at his handlebars, scrubbing a hand through his hair, he remembers what he should have said first.
"Wow, congratulations."
no subject
"Why not? We were in that future-that-might-be. Who's to tell us we can't?"
It seems simple enough to him. It's not as though they need to have it done up legally - he's not even sure if they could. They aren't citizens of this world. They can do as they please, and as far as he's concerned, a marriage doesn't need a paper. Plenty of folks back home didn't have papers, they just had the ceremony and that was that.
"And really, you know me. Do you think I could have just one husband?"
There's humor in his voice and a sparkle in his eye as he says it, grinning as Wilhelm offers his congratulations.
no subject
"No, I guess not. And Jesper would never let himself be limited to just one either." He reaches across to give Mat's arm a friendly pat. "You two really are meant for each other."
Marriage. He's still trying to wrap his head around it. They're all so young — a little older than Wilhelm, sure, but not by much. Marriage feels like something a long way down the road, beyond where sight can reach. He's had a hard enough time just finding someone and keeping them. But, he supposes, when you know you want to spend the rest of your life with someone, it's never too soon to begin.
"So when is the wedding? You're having a big party, right?"
no subject
And thank the Light for that. No jealous bouts, no possessiveness...Mat doesn't know how anyone puts up with all of that.
"And we're not that far along yet, haven't got a date or anything. Just...when we know it's safe, I suppose. But we will have the biggest party you've ever seen!"
That's a promise. As though Jesper would do anything else. He'd make the damn thing the event of the year, if not the decade.
"Of course you'll be a part of the whole thing, you're a good friend to two of us at least."
no subject
It's much nicer to think about the wild party Jesper will no doubt put on to celebrate his union with Mat and Kaz. When they dreamed they were gods, he'd accompanied Jesper to mortal weddings to bless the happy couples. Even without the aid of divine power, his friend's spirit is contagious.
"You know I wouldn't miss it for anything."